What is a Sauced-Noodle?
This recipe can be broken down into four main components: Noodles, Protein, Vegetables, and Sauce
The noodles can be ramen, la mian, or lo mein. Utilize a thicker noodle and cook the noodles al dente, aka to the tooth, for a texturally pleasing and fantastic dish.
The chicken and mushrooms are both from Trifecta Meal Prep, which cuts down on the cooking time substantially.
The sauce is store-bought and is enhanced slightly with some fresh aromatics. Be sure to purchase a low-sodium sauce or feel free to substitute out your favorite.
Though this recipe does not call for extra vegetables aside from the mushrooms and the spinach, feel free to add other Asian vegetables like bok choy, broccoli or broccolini, or any leafy green like kale.
How To Make Sauced Noodles with Chicken and Mushrooms
Prep Time: 10 minutesCook Time: 15-20 minutes
Servings: 4 each
Ingredients
- 16 ounces Trifecta chicken, diced into bite sized squares
- 8 oz cooked Lo mein, ramen, or lamian noodles
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil
- 1 tablespoon garlic, minced, fresh
- 2 cups Trifecta mushrooms
- 2 cups Spinach, raw
- ¾ cup Thai Peanut sauce
- ¼ cup Sriracha (optional)
- ¼ cup Hoisin sauce (optional)
- Cilantro or Thai basil for garnish, optional
- Kosher salt, to taste
Kitchen Tools
- 2 saucepans
- 1 large saute pan
- Knife
- Cutting board
- Spatula or wooden spoon
- Weight scale
- Measuring cups and tablespoons
- Stainless steel bowl
Step 1: Cook Noodles According to Package Directions. Maintain Hot
Cook the noodles of your choice according to the packaging instructions.
Drain, rinse under cold water, and return to the same pan. Keep warm on the side off heat.
I highly encourage you to cook your noodles al dente -- this will help offset any potential further cooking of the noodles when reheating them.
Step 2: Meanwhile, Make the Sauce and Reduce
To prepare the sauce add the hoisin and Sriracha to a small saucepan along with your choice of sauce and simmer for 5 minutes.
I suggest you start this process as you are dropping your noodles to cook, to save time and multitask, this will also produce a voluptuous and think sauce to coat the noodles, chicken, and vegetables.
Feel free to skip this step if you want to stick with a store-bought sauce.
Step 3: Saute Garlic, Chicken, Mushrooms, and Spinach
In a large saute pan, add the oil and bring the heat up to medium-high.
Once the oil is shimmering, cook the garlic for a quick 1 minute.
Immediately add the chicken, and cook for 2 minutes, stirring often. Add a pinch of lime juice to deglaze the pan if the bottom is getting too brown.
Add the mushroom, saute and then add the spinach. Stir often to help cook the spinach and continue to reheat all other items.
Lastly, I also suggest adding a splash of the sauce to the pan to coat all of the items and flavor them further.
Taste for seasoning and if needed, add a pinch of salt.
Step 4: Sauce Noodles with Thai Sauce
Combine the now reduced sauce with the noodles and bring to a light simmer to reheat the noodles while drenching them in the sauce.
Add a pinch of water to the sauce if it has reduced too much.
The sauce should beautifully coat the noodles - if the sauce is too watery, reduce the sauce a bit further with the noodles in it.
Avoid reducing the sauce excessively or cooking the noodles in the sauce for too long as this will overcook them and/or make the sauce extra salty. Taste for seasoning and adjust as needed.
Step 4: Combine, Mix and Serve
On a bowl, combine 3 ounces of the sauced noodles, along with 5 ounces of the chicken-vegetable mix. Mix to incorporate.
Be careful not to burn yourself while mixing these two. Transfer to a plate and serve. Add any extra vegetables as desired for color and extra fiber (I added cherry tomatoes).
Storing Your Noodles
Make sure you cool down your meal prep completely before storing in the fridge. If the food is stored hot/warm in a covered container, the food will both go bad and may potentially create the perfect scenario for bacteria to grow, increasing the risk of a food-borne illness.
Follow this recommendation and best practice to avoid such situation.
Store for up to 5 days in the fridge.
Meal Prepping Sauced Noodles with Chicken and Mushrooms
I recognize that noodles can be quite high in carbohydrates.
At Trifecta we are focused on providing macro-balanced meals, here are a few tips on how to best control the serving sizes of the noodles, to keep the plate well balanced. The goal is to get ~40g of carbohydrates from the noodles alone.
Each noodle/product varies slightly in nutritional value, but the 40 grams of carbohydrates are an average from the products I was able to scout.
- Weigh 2 oz of the cooked noodles
- Reduce the sauce separately
- In a bowl combine the 2 oz with 2 tablespoons of the reduced sauce and coat evenly.
- Combine this with 4 ounces of the diced chicken breast, and ⅓ cup of the mushrooms and a handful of the wilted spinach.
- Plate into individual containers and add an extra tablespoon of sauce on top.
Too busy? We Got You!
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